Warriors: Darkness Rising
by Petalfall of DawnClan
Summary: A prophecy is told of a devastating darkness that could destroy all of the Clans, but also of a cat that could stop it. Petalpaw doesn't know it yet, but she is the one that is stronger than StarClan, the one that could save DawnClan, DuskClan, MorningClan, and NightClan from their terrible fate.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Lilystripe gazed down at her single remaining kit and listened to her soft mewls. She drew her closer with her paw and the mewling ceased as the kit began to suckle. Lilystripe laid her head down, tired after the kitting.

"Are you okay on your own now?" Brightleaf asked. The medicine cat's eyes shone with concern. It had been her first kitting by herself since her mentor, Pinewhisker, had been killed by a monster. Lilystripe could also see guilt hiding behind her concern. She thought that it was her fault that her other two kits had died, but it hadn't been. They had were too small and had been born so early.

"It's not your fault," Liliystripe said. "There was nothing you could've done." Brightleaf didn't answer, she merely turned and padded out of the nursery. A few moments after she left, a starry, transparent figure came sliding noiselessly through the nursery entrance.

"Sparrowflight?" Lilystripe gazed in surprise at her deceased mother. "What are you doing here?"

Sparrowflight didn't answer. She began to speak in a dark, monotonous voice that was very unlike the soft, kind voice that she usually used when speaking to her daughter. _A great darkness is coming._ She said. _A darkness that could mean the end of the Clans as we know them. But there is hope. Hope that lies in the paws in the paws of a cat that is more powerful than even StarClan. But these paws need someone to guide them, or they will stumble and fall, and there will be no one to save the Clans._ Before Lilystripe could say anything, Sparrowflight disappeared.

Lilystripe's still unnamed kit began mewling again. Lilystripe turned to her mate, Reedtail. "Did you see that?" She asked.

"Mmm? See what?" Reedtail asked.

"Nothing," Lilystripe sighed. Those words that Sparrowflight had said had been meant for her and her kit only, but she didn't know why. _Is our kit the one that is stronger than StarClan? Do I need to guide her? Guide her in what?_ Somehow she believed that she wasn't the one meant to guide her. But she was still her mother, and she would always protect her no matter what.

"Shouldn't we name her?" Reedtail's mew interrupted Lilywhisker's thoughts. She hadn't even thought of a name for the kit yet. "What about Bobkit, since she has a bobbed tail?" Lilystripe hadn't thought about that either. Instead of a normal, long tail like other cats had, this kit only had a stump for her tail. But somehow 'Bobkit' just didn't suit her.

"No," Lilystripe said. "I want us to name her from what our hearts see, not our eyes."

"Of course," Reedtail said. Then he thought for a moment. "How about Petalkit?" He said.

"Petalkit," Lilystripe whispered. She stared down at her kit, analyzing every tiny detail of her brown and black fur. "It's perfect."

"Petalkit it is then," Reedtail purred. They both curled around Petalkit, closing their eyes. Whatever complicated destiny Petalkit had didn't matter now. Right now Petalkit was just Petalkit, and her only job was to play and have fun and be curious. Liliystripe would make sure of that. As she closed her eyes she nuzzled up closer to her kit and whispered in her ear, "I love you."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Petalpaw! Petalpaw!"

Petal raised her head proudly as her fellow DawnClan cats began chanting her new apprentice name. She bounded forward and touched noses with Birchstorm, one of the best mentors she could have asked for. "I promise to be the best apprentice I can be," she said determinedly to him.

"We'll see about that," Birchstorm said, a twinkle in his eyes.

Petalpaw twitched her ears as she heard someone walking towards her. She turned and saw Liliystripe, pride shining in her eyes. "I'm so proud of you," she said.

"Thanks Lilystripe," Petalpaw said. "But remember, I'm an apprentice now, so you can't be shadowing me around everywhere I go."

"I know," she said. Suddenly her voice and gaze turned serious. "I trust you to make the right descisions."

 _What does she mean?_ Petalpaw thought.

"Hey Petalpaw!" A cheerful voice called out to her before she could go into much thought. She looked to see her best friend Cloudpaw bounding up to her. She had just apprenticed a few moons before. "Now I can finally share a den with you again! I have to admit, it was a bit lonely in the apprentice den without you. Rainpaw, Barkpaw, and Deerpaw aren't much fun."

"Petalpaw let out a _mrrrow_ of laughter. "And it was definitely a lot quieter in the nursery without you."

Cloudpaw flicked her ear with her tail. " _Too_ quiet I bet."

Before they could finish their conversation, Birchstorm padded up to them. "Sorry to interrupt, but it's time for me to show Petalpaw the rest of DawnClan territory. You'll be surprised by how big it is!"

"Yeah, it's _huge!"_ Cloudpaw exclaimed. "Can I come with you guys? I can show Petalpaw the best places to sun yourself."

"I wish you could, but I think Thornstar wants you and Ivytail to join a hunting patrol with Owlwhisker," Birchstorm said.

"Oh, ok," Cloudpaw said, and went off to join her mentor, who was talking with Owlwhisker. In a way, Petalpaw was kind of glad that Cloudpaw wasn't joining them. She wanted some time with just her and Birchstorm so that she could get to know her mentor better. She followed him through the brambles that encircled the camp, and arrived to a vast expanse of trees.

"Wow!" Petalpaw said. "It is huge!" Everywhere she looked there was a new area to explore. "Where are we going first?" She said, thinking that they couldn't possibly explore it all.

"I was thinking that you could see all of the Clan borders first, get used to their scent, make sure that you won't go running off onto another Clan's territory by mistake."

"I would never do that!" She argued, but the insult was quickly forgotten as Birchstorm beckoned her with his tail. After a minute or so of walking, the trees began to thin out, and she was greeted by a strange musky scent. She opened her mouth to taste the air and wrinkled her nose. "What is that?" She asked.

"That would be DuskClan," he said. "You see that thick layer of undergrowth there? That would be around where the border between our territory and theirs is. Although it changes constantly."

"What do you mean?" Petalpaw asked. _Why would it change at all?_

"We're sort of in this feud with DuskClan. It's pointless really. We never did anything to provoke them, but Wolfstar just decided that we weren't to be trusted, and now we just hate each other.

"But that doesn't make any sense," Petalpaw said, confused.

"Sometimes I feel that way too," Birchstorm sighed. "But there's nothing we can do about it."

 _Surely there is?_ Petalpaw thought. She shook her head. That didn't matter. She followed Birchstorm as he showed her NightClan's and MorningClan's territories. NightClan lived in a barren forest full of bare trees and MorningClan lived on the flat, open grasslands.

"How do they live there? There's no trees for them to climb or give them shelter," Petalpaw wondered.

Birchstorm shrugged. "They probably think it's weird to live where there are so many trees," he said. "Anyway, come on. There's one more thing I want to show before we go back to camp." He turned the other way and led her to a wide wall of bushes. A foul, incredibly strong stench filled her nose, almost making her gag.

"Where are we?" She choked.

"You'll see," Birchstorm answered. They walked through the bushes and were greeted by a huge, straight black path. The stench was overpowering here.

Sunddenly, Petalpaw felt the ground tremble beneath her, and an enormous, shiny creature with round rubber paws ran by them at an incredible speeds. Petalpaw screeched and jumped back, her pelt bristling. "What was _THAT!?" She cried._

"That was a monster," Birchstorm said matter-of-factly. Seeing her frightened expression, he added, "Don't worry. They never stray from the Thunderpath. That's what that black stretch of land is. It's very dangerous to cross, and you must never, _ever_ cross it without a warrior. Cats have died here."

"Petalpaw spoke, still trembling. "Why would anyone want to cross it?" She asked in disbelief.

"Because on the other side is the MoonCave. It's where you go to share tongues with StarClan. Usually only medicine cats go there, or leaders when they receive their nine lives, but other cats have gone."

Petalpaw stared in wonder across the Thunderpath, but her concentration was broken when another monster whizzed past. She yelped and jumped backwards.

Birchstorm stifled a laugh. "I think that's enough for today. Let's go back to camp."

Petalpaw wanted to argue, but then realized how tired she was. She was grateful when they entered the DawnClan camp.

"Go get something to eat, and then get some rest. We start training tomorrow," Birchstorm said.

Excitement fizzed through Petalpaw's paws. Training! She couldn't wait. She chose a mouse from the fresh-kill pile and went to go sit with Nutfur and the rest of the elders. They always told the best stories, and she looked forward to hearing one without Lilystripe's supervision. After she thought she wouldn't be able to listen to another story for the next moon, she curled up in her new nest next to Cloudpaw and fell right asleep.

Petalpaw was awoken by Birchstorm the next morning. She was about to protest when she remembered that today was her first day of training. She leaped to her paws eagerly and asked, "What are we doing today?"

"Don't get too excited. You're going to wake up your Clanmates," Birchstorm said laughing.

Petalpaw looked behind her and realized guiltily that Rainpaw and Barkpaw were still asleep. "Sorry," she said sheepishly.

"It's ok. Anyway, today you're going to learn how to hunt."

Hunting! Petalpaw's whiskers tingled with anticipation. "Is Cloudpaw training with us?" She asked.

"She and Deerpaw should already be at the training hollow," Birchstorm replied.

"Then let's go!" Petalpaw cried enthusiastically and bounded after Birchstorm until they reached the training hollow, where Ivytail and Lightningrunner were teaching Deerpaw and Cloudpaw how to chase rabbits.

When Cloudpaw saw Petalpaw she looked up and her expression brightened. "Hi Petalpaw!" She called.

"Cloudpaw!" Ivytail scolded, although her expression was humorous. "You just let the rabbit get away!"

"Oops," Cloudpaw said, looking down at her paws. "Sorry."

"It's ok." It was Birchstorm who answered. "Just make sure it doesn't happen when we're actually going hunting."

Cloudpaw sat up again. "It won't!"

"Now that Petalpaw's here," Lightningrunner chimed in, beckoning to Deerpaw, "Why don't you show her a proper hunting crouch?"

Deerpaw nodded. "Sure," he said, and lowered himself into a crouch.

Petalpaw studied him, gazing over every inch of his light brown fur. She liked the way he looked, his eyes focused ahead of him, looking ready to spring at any moment. She tried to mimic him but kept getting distracted.

Birchstorm shook his head. Cloudpaw snickered. "I don't know what that is, but I wouldn't let _my_ apprentice go hunting with it," she said.

"Sorry," Petalpaw mumbled. She tried again, and this time she knew she had done better.

"Much better," Birchstorm praised his apprentice. "But you'll get more power if you bunch up your haunches beneath you. It'll be a little uncomfortable at first, but once you get used to it, it will feel completely natural."

Petalpaw nodded and did as she was told. "Very good," Birchstorm purred. "Now, stay exactly like that." He grabbed a stick and dragged it to the center of the clearing. "Now see if you can pounce on this stick."

Petalpaw narrowed her eyes as she focused on the stick. She got ready, and quick as a snake, she leaped up and aimed for the stick. But in all her excitement she accidentally put too much power behind her spring. She landed a few mouse-lengths ahead and skidded to a halt, scrabbling in the dirt.

"That's not how you do it!"Cloudpaw said. "I'll show you how it's done." She crouched down low, sprang, and landed perfectly on the stick. "Ta-da!" She said proudly, the stick grasped in her teeth.

"Let me try again," Petalpaw insisted. Cloudpaw set the stick down, and this time when Petalpaw pounced her paws landed squarely on the stick. She smirked at Cloudpaw. Cloudpaw avoided her gaze.

"Nice job Petalpaw," Birchstorm said, and Petalpaw lifted her head proudly.

"Yeah, not bad for your first time," Ivytail said teasingly.

"Yeah, that was pretty good", Deerpaw said.

For some reason, that comment made her even more proud. _Why do I care so much about what Deerpaw thinks?_ She asked herself. She shook her head and asked, "What's next?"

"Next, you're going to learn how to sneak up on prey," Birchstorm said. "If your prey is too far away to pounce on it from where you're standing, then you have to be able to get close enough to it without scaring it away." Petalpaw nodded. "Now," Birchstorm continued, "Start out in your hunting crouch." Petalpaw did as she was told, and Birchstorm's whiskers twitched in an amused way.

"Am I doing something wrong?" Petalpaw asked, worrying that she had messed up already. What if she had embarrassed herself in front of everybody?

"No," Birchstorm said, breaking her thoughts. "It's just that, I'm used to having to tell apprentices to keep their tails still. Obviously I won't have that problem with you."

Petalpaw looked behind her at her stump of a tail. She didn't understand how every other cat could live with a tail, all they did was get in the way of everything. Focusing back on her lesson, she asked, "What do I do now?"

"You want to make sure to move each paw separately, and very slowly. Make sure you place each step carefully, don't step on anything that might make a sound and scare off your prey. And remember, always focus on your prey, don't let anything distract you."

Petalpaw nodded to show that she understood.

"Now, Deerpaw is going to pretend to be a mouse." Deerpaw went and stood at the end of the clearing. "You're going to have to try and sneak up on him."

Petalpaw began to creep forwards, paw by paw, not making a sound. Once she was close enough, she sprang and pounced on Deerpaw, making sure to keep her claws sheathed. "Got you!" she cried. Deerpaw smirked, and before Petalpaw could react, Deerpaw rolled out from underneath her and pinned her down instead.

"Hey, that's not fair! Prey can't fight back!" Petalpaw tried but failed to wriggle out from underneath Deerpaw's strong grasp. So she lifted her paw and swatted hard at his shoulder. Surprised and unbalanced, Deerpaw stumbled just long enough for Petalpaw to leap up and jump on his back, pinning him down again. "It appears you have underestimated me," Petalpaw said in a low, menacing voice.

"All right, all right, you win," Deerpaw said, and Petalpaw let him go.

"Nice going!" Birchstorm said, looking impressed. "Both with the stalking and fighting. You'll be hunting and fighting like a warrior in no time."

"Thanks!" Petalpaw beamed.

Lightningrunner looked up at the sky. "I think that's enough training today. All of you did very well."

"Especially you Petalpaw!" Cloudpaw exclaimed, running up to meet her. "That was a great move you did on Deerpaw."

"Don't get too cocky," Deerpaw said, catching up to them. "Next time, you won't get so lucky." With that he bounded off after Lightningrunner.

As they entered the clearing, a loud wail suddenly sounded near the enterance. Blackfur emerged from the bushes, looking distressed, followed by Reedstalk dragging a large, limp shape in his jaws. Petalpaw realized with horror that the shape was Stormflower, one of DawnClan's newest warriors.

And now she was dead.


	3. Chapter 2

Birchstorm ran over to Blackfur and Reedstalk, followed by a growing crowd of cats.

"What happened?" They all asked. "Are you okay? Did DuskClan have anything to do with this?"

Thornstar shouldered his way through the crowd, calmly approaching the two overwhelmed and claearly distressed cats.

"Step away everybody, give them some space," he meowed with a commanding voice. Every cat immediately took several steps back except for Ravenwing and Blizzardstripe, Stormflower's mother and brother. Petalpaw was suddenly overwhelmed with sorrow at their heartbroken expressions. She knew Stormflower's death would be especially hard on them since Flamepelt, Ravenwing's mate and Blizzardstripe's father, had died many moons ago in battle. Blizzardstripe was shouting at Blackfur and Reedstalk but Ravenwing remained completely silent, too shocked to speak. Thornstar stepped in front Blizzardstripe and rested his tail on his shoulder, silencing him.

"I understand how you feel right now. I really do. I'm extremely sorry that this happened, and I wish there was a way to fix it. But there's not and taking it out on Blackfur and Reedatalk won't help anything." His words had a calming effect on Blizzardstripe, who hung his head in sorrow.

"I know, I just...can't believe this happened." His voice started to break towards the end of his sentence.

"I am truly sorry for your loss," Thornstar meowed. "After Brightleaf is done taking care of her, you can have as much time alone with her as you wish until we sit vigil at nightfall."

The two cats nodded numbly at him.

"Brightleaf?" he called. Brightleaf looked up and walked over, her gaze filled with grief for the dead warrior. "Take care of Stormflower," Thornstar said somberly. Brightleaf nodded and carried Stormflower's body to the edge of the clearing, Blizzardstripe and Ravenwing following behind her. Thornstar faced Reedstalk and Blackfur, and beckoned them to his den.

After the three of them disappeared into Thornstar's den, Petalpaw turned to Birchstorm and asked, "What happened?"

"I don't know any more than you do," Birchstorm responded sadly. "We'll just have to wait to find out. Now, go and get something from the fresh-kill pile. You need it."

Petalpaw did as he said and picked at a mouse, suddenly not hungry. She eventually gave up on her meal and took it to the elders, who graciously accepted. She then laid down in the apprentice den for what seemed like a lifetime when she finally heard Thornstar call "May all cats old enough to fight and hunt please gather in the clearing for a Clan meeting!"

Petalpaw found a spot in the clearing next to Cloudpaw and sat down, waiting quietly like the rest of the cats. Thornstar gracefully leapt up onto the huge, old tree stump that sat at the front of the clearing, where he always stood to address his Clan. After the few lingering murmurs were silenced, Thornstar began to speak.

"I know that you have all been wondering what happened to Stormflower. Blackfur and Reedstalk have shared the details with me, and I can assure you that DuskClan had nothing to do with it." A few doubtful whispers arose from the crowd, but Thornstar quickly silenced them with a flick of his tail. "The cause of Stormflower's death was not a cat, but a snake."

Petalpaw felt Cloudpaw stiffen beside her. There were lots of things that Petalpaw knew Cloudpaw was afraid of. Water, dogs, badgers, dark and enclosed spaces, foxes. But right at the top of that list was snakes.

"This is no reason for anyone to panic," Thornstar continued. "Blackfur and Reedstalk only saw one snake, which means that we will just have to be more cautious until it is caught. For now, I will send out a patrol to try and catch the snake and any other ones that might be near. This patrol will consist of Ivytail, Dustfoot, Leopardheart, and Hawkflight. Blackfur, would you mind going with them and showing them where you last saw the snake?"

Blackfur shook his head and lead the four cats who were called to the camp enterance. As the rest of cats began going back to their dens and normal daily activities, Thornstar added, "We will hold vigil for Stormflower tonight." Cloudpaw quickly got up and ran over to her mentor after Thornstar jumped down from his stump. "Ivytail, you can't go!" she wailed. "You're gonna get hurt!"

"Don't worry, I'll be okay," Ivytail reassured her soothingly. "I'll be careful." With that, she followed the rest of the patrol out of the camp.

"She's gonna be fine, you whiny little kit," Petalpaw said.

"I know, I know," Cloudpaw sighed. "I'm just worried, you know?"

"I understand," Petalpaw said. "I'd feel exactly the same way if Birchstorm was going out there too."

After a moment of silence, Cloudpaw piped up, "You wanna see if Mosskit and Spiderkit want to play DuskClan invaders?"

"Sure!" Petalpaw said. Mosskit and Spider kit were Owlwhisker and Leafwind's two lively and enthusiastic kits, and the newest editions to DawnClan. They had been born only a few moons before Petalpaw had been made an apprentice. They had taken a special liking to Cloudpaw and Petalpaw, and loved playing a game they called 'DuskClan invaders' with them, where Cloudpaw and Petalpaw were DuskClan warriors invading the camp, and Mosskit and Spiderkit were two brave warriors who fought them off. Petalpaw had more fun playing DuskClan invaders than she would like to admit.

The two apprentices bounded over to the nursery, and Petalpaw felt a tiny twinge of longing. She had to admit, she would miss the comfy nests and soft atmosphere of the nursery. But she was an apprentice now, and things like that were far behind her.

They reached the nursery, and before either of them could peep in and say hello, Mosskit and Spiderkit came bolting out of the nursery, followed by Mudkit, Skykit, and Amberkit, three of the older kits whose apprentice ceremonies were right around the corner. Mosskit threw back her head and yowled, "You'll never catch us, DuskClan scum!" She continued running until she crashed into Cloudpaw, Spiderkit and the others skidding to a halt behind her.

Cloudpaw looked down at all five of the kits. "While you two foolish Clans were busy bickering," she bellowed, tail and head held high, "You would have never expected NightClan to be busy taking over the whole forest!" She swiped her paw close to Mosskit's head, pretending to attack her.

Mosskit turned to face her denmates. "We must work together if we are to defeat these evil NightClan flea-bags!" She cried loudly.

"Charge!" Spiderkit howled back. And with that, Spiderkit and Amberkit flung themselves at Petalpaw, hooking their tiny claws into her fur, while the other kits jumped on Cloudpaw.

"Oh no!" Petalpaw yelped. "They're too strong! We should have never messed with them!" She flopped dramatically on to the ground, Cloudpaw landing next to her.

Amberkit and Spiderkit tries to hold back their laughter. "That's what you get for messing with DawnClan, the strongest Clan in the forest!" Amberkit said triumphantly.

"You're supposed to be DuskClan, you mouse-brain!" Spiderkit said, swiping his paw across Amberkit's ear.

"No one cares!" Amberkit retorted. "What matters is that we defeated the NightClan cats!"

"Yes, you have defeated us," Cloudpaw said. "Now please, let us go!" "We promise never to try and take over the forest ever again!"

"Do you think we should let them go, Mosskit?" Mudkit asked.

"Hmm," Mosskit pondered, studying the two cats. "I think that we've given them enough punishing. We'll let them go."

"Thank you!" Petalpaw said. "We'll make sure to tell Foxstar never to mess with you!"

"You better!" Skykit spat. "Now be gone!"

The two apprentices pretended to limp away, heads down, while the kits all yowled in triumph. Petalpaw giggled. "I'll miss the days when I was a kit and the older apprentices always let me win," she said.

"Yeah," Cloudpaw agreed. "But there's nothing like being attacked and brought down by a horde of tiny kits."

"You're right," Petalpaw said. "And it's always nice to give them a sense of victory."

Cloudpaw and Petalpaw brgan walking to the apprentice den when Birchstorm interrupted them. "Hey Petalpaw, Cloudpaw," he said nodding to each of them. "Lightrunner is taking Deerpaw hunting, and I would like to take Petalpaw with them to see how she does hunting real prey.

Petalpaw stiffened. _Oh no!_ She thought. _What if I mess up! That would be so embarrassing!_

As if Birchstorm read her mind, he said "Don't worry, it's not a test, I just want to see what else I might need to teach you. I don't expect you to be an expert hunter on your first day."

Petalpaw relaxed. Good.

"Cloudpaw, you are welcome to come with us if you'd like," Birchstorm meowed.

"Of course I'll come with you!" Cloudpaw responded.

"Don't worry," Petalpaw said to Cloudpaw, smirking. "I'll try not to show you up on my first day."

"Oh, it is on," Cloudpaw said, and raced ahead to the camp entrance, where Lightningrunner and Deerpaw were already waiting.

"Come to show off your new hunting skills, have you?" Deerpaw mewed as Petalpaw and Birchstorm caught up to the rest of the group. "I have to warn you, real prey will be much harder to catch than a stick. You might not catch anything today."

"I'll probably catch more than you," Petalpaw retorted, but a flicker of nervousness rose inside of her. What if she didn't catch anything?

"Stop making fun of your Clanmate," Lightningrunner scolded, cuffing his apprentice over the ears. He then looked back at Petalpaw reassuringly and said, "I'm sure you'll do fine." He turned his head to Deerpaw and said, "And no one expects you to catch anything on your first day. The only thing Deerpaw managed to get on his first hunting trip was a mouthful of leaves."

"Ha! Really?" Cloudpaw laughed. "Oh man, I am gonna make fun of you for ages now."

Deerpaw bristled and stormed ahead of the group, mumbling under his breath.

 _I'll show that arrogant furball just what I can do._ Petalpaw thought, glowering after him. _I'll catch more prey today than he's ever caught in his lifetime!_

She followed the others towards a small clearing near the DuskClan border. Birchstorm abruptly stopped, and Petalpaw nearly ran into him. "What is i-"

"Shh!" Birchstorm hissed. He flicked his tail towards a mouse nibbling on a nut a few fox-lengths away. "This one's for you," he whispered.

Petalpaw nodded in response. She crouched down low, remembering what Birchstorm had taught her earlier. She inched forward slowly, step by step, until finally she was close enough to spring. She gathered her haunches beneath her and leapt up. The mouse looked up at her in surprise, but it was too late. Petalpaw landed right in front of the mouse and quickly delivered the killing blow before it could run away. She picked up the mouse and held it high, beaming at Birchstorm.

"Very impressive!" Birchstorm praised. "Excellent form."

Petalpaw beamed even brighter, then looked smugly at Deerpaw. He snorted and looked away. "Beginner's luck."

"I thought it was great," Cloudpaw said, barging past Deerpaw. "Especially for your first time."

"Thank you Cloudpaw," Petalpaw responded. "At least someone around here appreciates my excellence."

"Don't get too cocky," Deerpaw sneered. "Although from the sound of it, you already have."

Petalpaw opened her mouth to retort back, but before she could say anything, a harsh voice sounded behind her. "Hey!" it called out angrily.

A large, gray, strong looking tom barged into the clearing followed by four other cats, two who lokked like apprentices. "What do you want Stormfur?" Birchtorm asked coldly.

Stormfur! Petalpaw thought, alarmed. That's the DuskClan deputy!

"What I want," Stormfur responded, "is to know why you DawnClan trash are on our territory."

"Your territory!?" Cloudpaw screeched.

Birchstorm silenced her. "I'm sorry, but last we checked the scent markers indicated that this was part of our territory," Birchstorm said calmly.

"Well then it seems like your scent markers are outdated. If you couldn't tell already, we've claimed this land as our own," Stormfur continued.

"You have no right to expand your territory like this as you please." A hint of anger was starting to show in Birchstorm's voice.

"Oh please. It's not like you prey-stealers need this land anyway."

"Prey-stealers, huh?" Deerpaw piped up. "Well from what I can see of you fat excuses for warriors, you don't need it either."

The two apprentices bristled, but Stormfur remained calm. "There is no reason for a fight here," he said. "We will leave you alone if you leave in peace."

Petalpaw had just about had it with this cat. "Like you thing we're just going to give this land to you like scared little kits!" She spat. Stormfur glared at her, and took every ounce of willpower not to shrink back from him.

"We will wait here, and if you don't leave on your own, we will be forced to make you."

Nobody moved. Petalpaw began to get scared. Was there going to be a fight? All of the DuskClan cats looked pretty strong, but she wasn't about to let these fox-hearts step all over her and her Clanmates. After a few more moments, Birchstorm finally sighed and backed down.

"There's no reason for cats to get injured over a petty squabble like this," he growled. "But I won't let you continue to bully our Clan like this. From now on, this is where the borders will stay, and you will not expand your territory another pawstep into ours. Otherwise we'll have something to say about it."

Stormfur bowed his head in a mocking way. "Of course," he meowed coldly. "I wouldn't dream of it." With that he turned around and led his patrol back the way they came.

Petalpaw looked nervously up at Birchstorm, who was still glaring daggers into the backs of the DuskClan warriors, his fur bristling. Petalpaw had been able to almost sense the tension in the air during their confrontation, and she knew they had been seconds away from a fight. None of the other cats said a word before Birchstorm finally relaxed and turned to face them.

"I'm sorry you had to witness that," he said to the apprentices. "But unfortunately that's the kind of thing that happens when Clans have such...such different mindsets."

"Yeah," Lightningrunner snorted, lashing his tail. "The mouse-brains don't know how to mind their own business and be happy with they have."

Birchstorm sighed. "There's nothing we can do about it now. All we can do is report what happened to Thornstar and let him decide how to handle it."

Deerpaw let out a frustrated growl. "Why couldn't we have fought them? We could have easily drove them off and taught them a lesson."

"Yeah, for once I agree with bird-brain over here," Cloudpaw meowed, finally speaking up. "We shouldn't have just let them push us around like that."

Lightningrunner shook his head. "Their patrol was bigger than ours, and filled with more experienced warriors," he meowed. "We would have only caused more damage by attacking them."

"Come on," Birchstorm mewed, trying to take on a happier tone. "Let's just forget about what happened and continue with our hunting patrol. It's over now, and besides, I want to see more of what Petalpaw can do."

"Y-yeah," Petalpaw stammered She tried to shift her attention back to what they had come to do in the first place but she was too distracted by what had happened to hunt properly. Was that kind of thing really normal between DawnClan and DuskClan? Were the tensions that high? How long would it be before they finally snapped and their conflicts switched from border skirmishes to all out battles? She was plagued by these questions for the rest of the hunting patrol.

She was never able to catch more than her first single mouse.


	4. Chapter 3

The next day, Petalpaw's worries slowly began to fade as they were replaced with utter boredom and frustration. While the previous day's hunting patrol had been a mostly fun experience for Petalpaw (until DuskClan had shown up of course), she was now stuck doing mundane chores such as gathering moss for bedding or getting rid of the elders' ticks. This was definitely not what she had in mind when she thought about all of the epic things she would learn as an apprentice.

After about the six hundredth trip from Brightleaf's den back to the elders, she had had enough. She sauntered over to where Birchstorm was enjoying a squirrel by the fresh-kill pile and sat herself in front of him, trying to muster the most depressing, tortured expression she could. Birchstorm looked at her with an expression resembling amusement rather than pity. Not what Petalpaw was going for. "Have you been enjoying yourself?" He asked, his whiskers twitching in amusement.

"It's not funny!" Petalpaw complained. "I thought that once I became an apprentice I would get to do super important things for the Clan, but instead I'm just stuck doing these stupid tasks. And why don't Cloudpaw and the other apprentices have to do them with me? It's not fair!"

Birchstorm sighed, taking on a more serious expression. "I know how you feel, Petalpaw. Every other apprentice goes through the same thing you're going through. I did, Cloudpaw and the others did, even Thornstar did when he was an apprentice. I know that right now it doesn't seem like you're doing much, but every little thing helps. And besides, you can be learning things while you're doing these tasks."

"What do you mean?" Petalpaw asked. "I'm not exactly learning anything by dealing with the cranky elders all day."

"Well," Birchstorm continued. "While you're out gathering moss or supplies for Brightleaf, you can also be taking the time to familiarize yourself with DawnClan territory. As you're walking, take note of your surroundings. The scenery, the smells, what kind of prey and other helpful materials you can find. It's also a good time to learn how to recognize Clan borders. And when you're treating the elders, ask them to tell you stories. Ask them about regrets they've had and things they wished they knew when they were your age. When you're helping Brightleaf, ask her about herbs and medicines and how to treat an injured cats if there's no medicine cat around. If you're willing to learn and grow as an apprentice and a warrior, every experience can be a learning opportunity."

Petalpaw was a bit taken aback by this response. She was expecting Birchstorm to tell her to suck it up and deal with it, not give her all of this insightful advice. She supposed she was grateful for it though, it was definitely better than being told to suck it up and deal with it. And it at least made the boring chores she had to do a little bit more interesting.

"Thanks for the advice, Birchstorm," she mewed, her mood improved. "I mean it. That was...actually helpful."

Birchstorm purred. "Anytime. It is my job as your mentor, after all."

Petalpaw stood up at stretched. "I guess I have to go back to Brightleaf now," she sighed. "But I'll definitely use the advice you gave me. By the time I'm done, I'll nearly be fit to be a medicine cat apprentice!"

"I don't doubt it for a second," Birchstorm said grinning. With that, Petalpaw trotted back to the medicine cat den with a little extra bounce in her step.

Petalpaw was exhausted by the time the sun had began to set. After she was finished with all of her apprentice duties she had ended the day doing combat training with Birchstorm. Despite her fatigue though, she had learned a lot. She learned from Brightleaf how to treat minor cuts and sprains and where to find certain medicinal herbs, and during combat training Birchstorm had taught her important fighting moves and helped her polish the move she had used on Deerpaw during hunting training the other day.

Satisfied with the day's outcome, she stretched her legs and nestled into her warm nest, ready to rest her tired body. She had not closed her eyes for more than what seemed like a moment when she felt something prodding her side. She groggily lifted her head and was about to snap at whoever was disturbing her rest when she saw Cloudpaw standing above her, bearing an expression of poorly contained excitement.

"What do you want Cloudpaw?" Petalpaw groaned. "Can't it wait til morning? I'm trying to sleep."

Cloudpaw began to hop impatiently from one paw to the other. "No no no it can't wait until morning we have to do it now. That way no one else will see where we're going," she whispered. Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Petalpaw's curiosity was slightly piqued. "What do you mean 'no one will see where we're going?' Where are we going that we can't have anyone else know?"

"You'll see, but first you actually have to come with me."

"That doesn't sound very reassuring. How do I know you're not going to lead me to some cat torturing device?" Petalpaw asked, smirking.

Cloudpaw rolled her eyes. "I'm serious, you're not going to want to miss this. You're going to love it, trust me."

Petalpaw sighed. "I don't really have a choice do I?"

"Not really," Cloudpaw said with a shrug. "Now come on, we have to go before anyone hears us."

Petalpaw groaned and got up from her nest. "Alright alright. Lead the way I guess."

"Yes!" Cloudpaw let out a cry of triumph, keeping it to a whisper as to not wake any of their denmates. "Ok, follow me, but be very very quiet."

"Obviously," Petalpaw whispered back. "We don't want anyone to know where we're going, right?" She followed Cloudpaw silently out of the den, carefully placing each paw step so that she made as little noise as possible. The two apprentices snuck through a narrow thicket of brambles opposite from where Blossompool was guarding the camp entrance, earning themselves a few scratches. "We'll have to explain these later," Petalpaw said to Cloudpaw. "And this time, let me come up with an excuse."

After a minute or two of walking, Cloudpaw led Petalpaw out of DawnClan territory. That was when Petalpaw began questioning Cloudpaw's decisions.

"Are you sure this is okay?" She asked. "What if we get lost or found out by a cat from another Clan? Do you even know where we're going?"

"Relax, Petalpaw. Of course I know where we're going. And no one's going to find us, the place I'm showing you isn't in any Clan territory," Cloudpaw responded.

Petalpaw was confused. "Then how do you even know where it is?"

"Oh, Deerpaw told me." Cloudpaw responded.

"Then how does Deerpaw know?"

Cloudpaw shrugged. "Beats me. He seemed sort of embarrassed about it and wouldn't tell me. I don't think he wanted me to know about it in the first place, he kinda just let it slip during a patrol one day."

"Huh," Petalpaw thought out loud to herself. "Weird."

"Anyway, that doesn't matter," Cloudpaw meowed, turning to face Petalpaw. "We're almost there and I'm super excited for you to see it!"

Petalpaw looked around and suddenly realized that they weren't in any place she recognized. Ahead of her were huge, oddly colored structures all lined up next to each other. The smells were strange, but not unpleasant. She thought she smelled cats, but they didn't smell anything like Clan cats.

"Wait," she said, realization washing over her. "Is this where kittypets and Twolegs live?"

"You guessed it!" Cloudpaw exclaimed. She must have seen Petalpaw's puzzled look, because she quickly added, "Don't worry, we won't be going inside any of the Twoleg dens or anything, the place I want to show you is just around this area. And if on the off chance we happen to run into any Twolegs or kittypets, they're mostly friendly and they won't bother you if you keep your distance.

Petalpaw wasn't entirely convinced of that second fact but she didn't want to disappoint Cloudpaw and turn back now, so she just nodded in response and kept walking. They eventually turned a corner and reached a small forest past all of the rows of what Cloudpaw had called "Twoleg dens." Cloudpaw seemed jittery with excitement. "Come on, come on!" She meowed happily. "It's just past these trees."

Petalpaw prayed to StarClan that whatever Cloudpaw wanted to show her was worth it, cause she was beginning to get tired from all the walking. However all of her expectations were shattered when they walked past a cluster of bushes and it was revealed what Cloudpaw was so eager about. At the center of a small clearing was a beautiful tree, slightly wider and taker than the others with colorful flowers blooming off of its branches. Surrounding it were more flowers that Petalpaw had never seen before. A tiny stream tricked around it, creating a calming and peaceful sound combined with the chirping cicadas. The whole scene was lit up beautifully by the moonlight shining through the opening in the trees. And the best part was the smell. The flowers mixed with the fresh grass mixed with the clean air was a refreshing change from the busy smell of cats and prey that perpetually plagued the DawnClan camp, and presumably every other Clan camp. She breathed in heavily and sighed, savoring the scent.

"Cloudpaw," she meowed, turning to face her friend. "This place is amazing."

"I know right!" Cloudpaw squealed. "And it's perfect because it's not too far from camp and as far as I know no one except for me, you and Deerpaw knows about it. Ooh, and there's one more thing." She ran up to the tree and circled around it. "This tree right here? It's perfect for climbing." With that she darted up the trunk and quickly hauled herself up to the first branch. "Come on!" She called. It's super sturdy, I promise!"

Petalpaw's paw pads tingled with excitement. She had never properly climbed a tree before, and all of the older apprentices always talked about how fun it was. She raced to the base of the tree and dug her front claws in first, then her back claws. She pushed off with her hind legs and latched herself onto a higher part of the tree before once again securing her back legs. She continued doing this until she reached Cloudpaw on the lowest branch, panting.

"Isn't this fun?" Cloudpaw asked.

"Yeah!" Petalpaw meowed. "It is!"

Before long they were in a race to see who could reach the highest branch in the shortest time, laughing and teasing each other. As they both neared the top, Petalpaw realized that the only way to beat Cloudpaw was to take a bit of a shortcut. She saw a branch a bit in front of her that was below a branch close to the top, and if she could get to it quickly then she'd be able to reach the highest branch before Cloudpaw. She crouched low and sprang, but lost her balance at the last second and could only flail helplessly at the branch in front of her as she plummeted towards the ground.

She let out a cry of panic as she realized what was happening and heard Cloudpaw yell her name from above her. As soon as she heard her name, something strange happened. Time seemed to slow around her, and she could see everything clearly as she fell past it. Without having time to process what was happening, she frantically looked around for anything to grab on to. She saw a branch that looked close enough to reach, so she stretched her paw out and hooked her claws into the bark. She swung on the branch as she came to abrupt stop, and time resumed at a normal pace as she scrambled to stand on it, trembling. That was when she really started to realize the strange phenomenon that had occurred ad she was falling.

What happened?

She was brought back to reality when she heard Cloudpaw hysterically screaming her name over and over again, asking her if she was okay.

"I'm okay, Cloudpaw!" She yelled up to her. "I caught myself!"

"Oh my gosh, thank StarClan!" Cloudpaw cried, her voice filled with relief. "I thought...I thought you were gonna die!"

"Well lucky for you I'm still alive," Petalpaw meowed, trying to diffuse the situation. "What would you have told Thornstar if I had died after you snuck me out of camp?"

"Not funny!" Cloudpaw called, making her way down the tree with just a little more care than before. After she reached the branch that Petalpaw was standing on, she shook off her pelt and looked at Petalpaw with an expression of genuine concern. "Are you really okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, I am thankfully." Petalpaw responded.

"Okay then, now that we've got that out of the way, we should probably head back before anyone sees that we're gone."

Petalpaw nodded in agreement. "Good idea." They both descended the rest of the way down the tree and walked in complete silence backs to the camp. Before they re-entered through the brambles, Petalpaw stopped to talk to Cloudpaw.

"Hey, thanks a lot for taking there. I mean it," she said. "It was petty fun until I almost fell to my death."

Cloudpaw giggled. "You're welcome! We should do it again some time."

"We should, but for now I'm going to curl up in my nest and sleep," Petalpaw meowed yawning. "I'm exhausted."

"Yeah, me too," Cloudpaw agreed. They both made their way through the brambles and into the apprentice den without waking anyone up, and Petalpaw gratefully settled into her nest.

Despite her exhaustion, Petalpaw had a hard time falling asleep. She was still a bit shaken up from what had happened earlier. When she finally fell asleep after what seemed like ages, she dreamed that she was falling from an endless tree into a dark, infinite void below her.


End file.
